1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices for blowing air across the surface of vehicles to dry moisture from such vehicles, and more particularly, to devices which can direct a stream of air both toward the rear of the vehicle and toward the front of the vehicle.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
Automated vehicle washing systems have been available for many years to automatically wash and dry vehicles. Large volume vehicle washing systems typically include a conveyor system for moving a vehicle through a series of washing and rinsing stations, and finally, through a drying station which serves to remove moisture from the surface of the vehicle.
A variety of drying stations are known for removing moisture from a vehicle. In one such known drying station, an air duct is pivotally secured to an overhead frame member. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,739, issued on Nov. 29, 1994 to the present applicant, an oscillating air blower for drying vehicles is disclosed wherein a drying stream of air is oscillated from side to side, relative to the path of vehicle travel, to more thoroughly dry the entire surface of the vehicle. The oscillating air blower described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,739 is an example of a so-called touch-free drying station that avoids any physical contact with the surface of the vehicle. The disclosed oscillating air blower avoids pressure losses which occur in other types of dryer units, thereby allowing the use of a smaller blower fan and motor, reduced consumption of electrical power, minimization of large power surges when the blower motor turns on and off, and decreased noise due to the use of a smaller blower.
The oscillating blower device disclosed in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,739 has an outlet nozzle that is generally directed toward the rear of the vehicle; in other words, the air stream emitted by such outlet nozzle generally travels in the direction from the front end of the vehicle toward the rear end of the vehicle. Thus, for example, a droplet of water initially located on the roof of the vehicle would tend to be blown backward along the roof of the vehicle toward the rear end of the vehicle by the air stream emitted by such outlet nozzle. Incidentally, as used within this specification, the phrase "toward the rear end of the vehicle" has the meaning just defined, and the phrase "toward the front end of the vehicle" refers to the opposing direction. Still referring to the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,739, as the vehicle is conveyed past the blowing device, the discharged air pushes water on the surface of the vehicle toward the rear end of the vehicle, effectively "stripping" excess moisture from the outer surface of the vehicle. However, as the rear window and rear end of the vehicle pass below such blowing device, the air stream is directed over and past, rather than against, the rear window and rear end of the vehicle. Thus, the rear window, trunk, rear end, and rear bumper of the vehicle are not as effectively dried as are the other surfaces of the vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,027 to Hurwitz discloses a blower wherein the discharge nozzle includes vanes, and wherein a piston and cylinder arrangement is used to control the position of such vanes. This system uses a feeler plate that contacts the vehicle to sense the contour of the vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,803,727 to Takeuchi discloses a vehicle dryer having a nozzle assembly that rotates from a rearwardly facing position to a forwardly facing position as the vehicle passes through the drying apparatus. This device also uses a "feeler" for engaging the external surface of the vehicle in order to sense the contour thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,193 to Burger discloses a vehicle dryer having several discharge nozzles, some of which can be swivelled about an axle to more effectively dry the rear side of the vehicle. To permit such swivel motion, air is delivered to such nozzles by flexible conduit.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,169 to Nelson discloses a vehicle dryer wherein each blower has an outlet nozzle that can be oscillated. A portion of the blower housing includes a flexible coupling to permit the angular orientation of the outlet nozzle to be varied relative to the remainder of the blower housing.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,596,818 to Jones discloses a vehicle dryer having oscillating nozzles that can be pivoted by a piston to direct air either rearwardly (as when the front of the vehicle is being dried) or forwardly (as when the rear of the vehicle is being dried). This system uses a hydraulic cylinder to control the rotation of the nozzle under the control of a proximity sensor which senses the trunk and/or rear end of the vehicle. However, the nozzle must be rotatably supported so that it can pivoted by such hydraulic cylinder.
None of the above-described blowers provides the advantages of applicant's novel blower described herein.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a blowing device that can emit discharged air in a generally rearward direction for stripping water toward the rear end of the car, but which can emit discharged air in a generally forward direction for more effectively drying rear windows, trunks, and rear ends of vehicles.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a blowing device that avoids significant drops in air pressure due to extensive air ducting in order to divert the flow of discharged air.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide such a blowing device that is also capable of providing an oscillating stream of air, that oscillates from side-to-side, for drying vehicles and the like, and which is compatible with the oscillating blowing device disclosed in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,739.
A further object of the present invention is to provide such a blowing device that is adapted to dry the entire surface of the vehicle without any physical contact between the blowing device and the surface of the vehicle.
A still further object of the present invention to provide such a blowing device which can operate at reduced air pressures, and hence, lower noise levels, and still selectively direct the discharged air either rearwardly or forwardly.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide such a blowing device which is relatively inexpensive to construct and maintain.
These and other objects of the present invention will become more apparent to those skilled in the art as the description of the present invention proceeds.